Chapter 3
Naruto was in Burn's office with Tamaki and both could see the captain was frowning.
"Naruto, Tamaki as of this moment you are both being transferred to the 8th Fire Company."
Both teens raised an eyebrow at this but Tamaki nodded her head.
"Is this for my suspension sir?"
Burns turned to Tamaki and smiled sadly, "Yes I'm afraid it is. Tamaki, while you did save those children and did report the incident, I'm afraid you will still need to be punished. The minute something like this was going on, you should have reported it to me or at least the others. A prayer that can save everyone? You should have at least mentioned it because this is something the church covets."
Tamaki lowered her head, not daring to look the captain in the face. She knew he was right and she was ashamed. More, she should have at least told someone else about it to see what their thoughts were but she just had so much trust in him she didn't want to doubt him.
Burns turned to Naruto.
"As for you, Naruto, the reason I'm sending you to the 8th is due to the recent incidents. Between the fights with the clerics and Rekka's recent outburst, we can't afford to give more ammo to the members of the church that want you gone. So, I believe sending you to the 8th is the safest."
Naruto nodded his head.
"Now then Tamaki head to your room and collect your stuff I'll have you dropped off at the Fire Station with Naruto in a bit."
The girl nodded her head and after tenting her hands she walked out of the room while looking back at Naruto who only gave her a small smile.
Once she walked out of the room Burns sighed, sitting down in his chair.
"Are you sure about what you saw?"
Naruto nodded his head, "There is no doubt, Shinra has the divine flame, from the way Rekka was talking about it, this flame is important. Something about some Evangelist, neither of us could figure out who this is or what important role they play in the grand scheme of things. But there is no doubt that someone is creating these bugs to create Infernals sir."
Burns sighed at the information, not liking this one bit.
"I see, then we need to make arrangement for trouble in the future but as you know with things here at the first my hands are tied to certain rules and restrictions."
"But sir what about this transfer? I get it, you're sending me to the 8th with Tamaki, but why? Just going there because of the fight and the clerics seems out of place."
Burns looked at him and shook his head,
"In truth, I believe something is coming and the 8th is going to be at the forefront of it all so I want you there to help in case this comes to pass."
"But-,"
"Naruto." Burns walked around his desk briskly and put his right hand on his shoulder, "I'm asking you to do this because you're the only one strong enough to do it. Plus, as your godfather it is my duty to make sure you can achieve all that you can and with the 8th, I think you're going to flourish more than here."
Naruto frowned but nodded his head,
"Very well I shall pack and prepare for the transfer. Will Captain Obi be waiting for us sir?"
"Yes, he will but until then your dismissed."
Naruto nodded his head and walked out of the room and sighed, "Man this is going to be one awkward meeting."
Later in the day, 8th Cathedral
Naruto had just finished putting his stuff away and was walking to the office when he heard a commotion going on. He heard a meowing and knew that it had to be Tamaki given that only she made those noises so without breaking his stride he opened the door,
"Tamaki are you alright?"
Looking into the room he saw that Tamaki had landed her ass on Shinra's face.
Naruto just deadpanned and sighed, "Lucky Lecher Lure I swear it is a pain for others." Naruto walked to her, pulled her off Shinra and pushing her to the other side of the room.
"JERK! I swear I'm going to scratch his eyes out!"
He rolled his eyes, "Sure you are, relax Tama, he didn't want that to happen, and you know it."
Turning to the room Naruto did his salute,
"Sorry for the late introduction names Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto," Naruto said with a polite bow. "Pleasure to meet you all."
The room nodded their head with Obi rolling his shoulders after dropping some of his weights,
"So, you prefer your last name first?"
Naruto smiled,
"Yes, but you can call me Naruto. I just don't like it when say my full name with my first name in the front."
The group nodded but Obi continued,
"So, did Burns tell you?" Obi asked Naruto, who gave the captain a confused eyebrow raise. "He told us about you being our masked friend that night at the 5th?"
Naruto nodded his head,
"Yeah, he said he didn't want me conflicting with the team and like I said, no offense to any of you that night. I was just doing my job to help find the source of spontaneous combustion on our end and we heard the rumors of the 5th."
The group nodded with Maki standing up and smiling,
"Well, I have to say your plenty strong I'm looking forward to training with you, recruit Uzumaki."
Naruto blushed, his face becoming bright pink and Obi smiled and Hinawa pushed his glasses up.
"Thanks um, Maki-chan."
"Chan?" Maki had a question mark appear above her head,
"Yeah, in the old language it is a way to show close familiarity, I did it with Tama but she prefers I don't do that." Naruto shrugged his shoulders not seeing his friend bristle. "Don't know why though but out of her respect I do it."
Maki smiled and had a small blush on her face,
"Thank you and don't worry, I don't mind."
Naruto smiled but he heard a cough and turned to see Iris tenting her hands in front of him.
"Sorry, I am Sister Iris." Iris introduced politely with a nervous smile. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
Tamaki looked at the nun in surprise but then worry with Naruto who gained a neutral stare at the nun.
Iris frowned,
"Is there something wrong."
Naruto shook his head, "No, but can I ask you a question?"
"Sure." Iris was more than willing to answer anything she could.
"Do you mind me?" Naruto asked as he pointed to himself.
"Huh?" Iris said in confusion.
"You see I'm a proto-nationalist." Naruto turned slightly from her to hide his eyes, "In my culture we don't worship the mighty Sol, we worship the goddess Amaterasu. I can't abide by the teachings of the church as it flies in the face of my own ideals and beliefs. I just want to know how you feel about that."
Iris stood there, everyone watched as the girl remained silent for a minute but her smile returned.
"I don't mind." Naruto looked at her in shock and she just continued smiling, "To me, Sol is my guiding light but if Amaterasu is yours then that is okay too. They are the same in a sense, the goal at least is to bring people comfort in the flame. So, I believe we should respect both even if we might not fully integrate."
Naruto looked at her and smiled while holding his gold pendant,
"Praise Amaterasu as this world is unworthy of your blinding brilliance." He praised in genuine happiness, taking comfort in the fact ONE person outside of Tamaki in the Church didn't mind his differing beliefs.
Iris smiled and laughed.
The rest of the group just smiled, happy that the two of them are bonding over their teachings and differences and even making and effort to respect each other.
Obi rolled his neck and asked,
"Naruto, I know that the 8th is not what your use to but if there is any way we can make it home, please let us know."
Naruto nodded his head and felt a bulb go off,
"Actually, there is one thing."
"What is it?"
Naruto got a little nervous, "Well if it is not too much trouble would any of you mind if I set up an Amaterasu shrine? I mean I'll keep it out of the way in respect to the sister, but I would like to have my own place where I can worship."
Obi smiled, "Sure just tell us what you need, and we'll help you set it up."
Naruto smiled brightly, "Thanks I appreciate it. I'll let you guys know when I find all the stuff I need later."
Naruto turned on his heels, "For now I got to finish some stuff from the 1st but I'll be back in a bit." Naruto walked out the door.
Tamaki turned to the sister and smiled,
"Thank you, Sister Iris, what you and the captain did means a lot to him. He never got a chance to have his own place of worship or even express his feelings about the church without a fight breaking out. This means a lot to him." Tamaki explained.
Shinra seeing Naruto gone decided, 'Probably the only time we are going to get her alone to ask.'
"Hey Tamaki."
The girl glared at him,
"What? I wanted to talk to the sister about lessons so I can complete my rights as a nun."
Shinra rubbed the back of his neck and stayed seated, figuring this is the safest spot on the other side of the room from her.
"Well, I was wanting to ask about Naruto and his flames."
Tamaki raised an eyebrow and the room turned to him and he gained a shade of red.
"You see when we were at the warehouse, I saw that he had overheated and that his skin was turning to ash," Shinra explained in a serious tone, to show he wasn't poking fun at their fellow fire soldier. "But after the fight I noticed that instead of the dark ash skin he had pink skin that was contrasting from his normal skin. I was wondering does his flame have healing properties?"
The room turned quiet and turned to Tamaki who frowned.
"In truth I don't know." Tamaki admitted. "There is a lot of Naruto's powers that are unknown even to the highest-ranking people in the Fire Force. Naruto only ever told me about his powers with the tails and the enhancements, but I don't know anything about his body being able to heal like that. I mean it is impossible, no one can reverse their body turning to ash from Tephrosis."
Obi nodded his head,
"Yeah, the guys at Hajima say it is impossible and anything like this would pique their interest if they learned it existed." Turning to Shinra, "Are you absolutely certain you saw all of that, Shinra?"
The teen nodded,
"Yeah, there is no doubt in my mind. I saw his skin had already healed from the damage and it seems that it was repairing it to be skin. I mean it looks normal now, but I swear I know what I saw." Shinra stated with resolve.
Hinawa and the others turned to their captain who sighed, rubbing the back of his head.
"Don't bother him about this until we know for sure. Even then let it be him that comes forward. If we try to pressure him, we'd be no better than the people in the church and Hajima."
The room nodded their head, Tamaki however kept her eyes on her desk thinking over this information.
'That would explain that one day, back then when he,' she shook her head, 'No I had to be seeing things that is all it was. The shock.'
Tamaki nodded her head and went back to her paperwork while the rest of the room got organized again to get things done promptly while also filing missing person's report on Arthur.
They lost their idiot again.
Evening…
"So, what do you think of Comp. 8?" Naruto asked Tamaki as he helped his friend unpack her possessions, minus her clothing, which Tamaki insisted she didn't need help with that.
"It is… not boring." Tamaki admitted as she put some books on her shelf as Naruto handed her some more books. "But I hate that Smiling Jerk!"
Tamaki was scowling, causing Naruto to chuckle.
"You're cute when you are angry." Naruto told her as he walked toward a box, reaching inside, missing the blush on Tamaki's face. "But it could be a turnoff to guys if you are too aggressive."
Tamaki face palmed.
"JERK!" Tamaki shouted as she punched Naruto in the shoulder.
Naruto laughed as his shoulder stung.
"Still got that Iron Fist." Naruto laughed as he did his best to ignore the pain. "But, if there is anything bothering you…" His tone becoming serious and somber. "Please, talk to me. I am here for you."
Tamaki calmed down, looking at the ground.
"I feel stupid." Tamaki admitted, sitting on her bed. "I should have been smarter than that. 'A prayer to save everyone'? What a joke."
Naruto sat in the chair scooting around to sit before Tamaki.
"I should have realized what Rekka was doing… but I didn't. I purposely put those children…" Tamaki started to panickily speak but stopped when Naruto put his hand on her shoulder.
"Tamaki." Naruto said as he stared into her eyes. "It's… you feel bad?"
Tamaki nodded, looking into Naruto's eyes.
"You want to do better?"
Tamaki nodded again.
"Then take a deep breath," Naruto instructed, taking a deep breath of his own, exhaling. "And just take it one mission at a time. You will be able to repent through actions. It will take time, but don't let it weigh you down, okay?"
Tamaki smiled.
"Thank you, Naruto, I neede…" Tamaki stopped talking when Naruto's hand appeared under her chin and he started to gently brush his finger tips under it, like one would do with a cat.
And JUST like a cat, Tamaki's eyes closed, and she smiled, purring.
"Nya…" She purred.
Her eyes snapped open, seeing Naruto's shit eating grin.
"NYA!" Tamaki squealed as she swung on Naruto, who spun the chair, spinning around quickly thanks to it being a swivel chair, laughing manically as Tamaki growled.
"THAT IS TOO FUNNY!" Naruto laughed as he kicked toward the door, only for Tamaki to jump at him.
'Oh, shit! My Lecher Lure!' Tamaki thought as she realized Naruto was about to smash into her breasts face first.
Naruto leaned to the side, Tamaki sailing past him, but he reached out and grabbed the back of her shirt, which dangerously stretched out before she was pulled back toward her bed.
"Damn, my shirt is ruined." Tamaki groaned as she realized that the head opening was stretched out and showed more of her body than she wanted… which is strange due to her combat outfit showing off her body in a bikini top.
She angrily turned to Naruto who snickered.
"I am going to claw your eyes out." Tamaki threatened.
"Sure, Tama." Naruto said as he got up. "See you tomorrow."
He slammed the door shut, avoiding a pillow to the face.
'Oh, man, she is too easy to mess with.' Naruto thought with a smirk.
His smirk died, grasping his necklace.
'May Amaterasu bless your dreams with happiness. Enter her warm embrace willingly.' Naruto prayed in silence.
He walked to his room, his thoughts on Tamaki's wellbeing, what could happen to them while they stayed in Company 8, and how he could live in the same area as Maki.
All important questions, none he got answers to as he had to finish putting away his own belongings.
Two days later
Naruto is sitting in front of a small shrine. It was of a woman with black hair and white face having a sun hanging behind her head. She was standing there with a radiant smile on her face. Around her was the markings of flames and Naruto had his hands held in a prayer motion with both palms together.
"Praise Amaterasu. I pray that this day is fruitful and eventful. Please continue to guide me through these trials so we may one day find the source of Spontaneous Combustion." Naruto prayed in earnest for the first time in a while.
Naruto sat there for a few more minutes until finally taking his hands out of their prayer motion, pushing himself back to his feet, and walking out of the room leaving the shrine waiting for his return.
Already here two days and Naruto had to admit he was a bigger fan of the 8th than the 1st as while stronger and he did grow to care for his comrades, here at least he got to pray to Amaterasu without someone causing trouble.
On top of that, Maki was showing him the ropes for the place and while Tamaki tried tagging along, he did manage to get alone with Maki quite a few times and Tamaki stuck with Iris. Which he was happy with as she was making a good friend and spending time with someone that was very patient.
Shinra on the other hand, not so much as she just outright hated him. How the guy seemed to be in the worse positions for her Lecher Lure he was not sure, but he did find it funny.
Until he put his hand on her breast or ass and then he ended up on the other side of the room thanks to one of his throws.
But being in the 8th was a blast and he was eager to see what the future had waiting for him soon.
Walking into the captain's room he quickly picked up one of his weights and started pumping up the dumbbell.
That was another thing he bonded over; him and Obi loved working out. While Naruto was more hand-to-hand fighting and sparring, he did appreciate working on building up muscle endurance and it is something he took full advantage of when the captain was happy someone shared his enthusiasm.
Another reason he smiled seeing the captain lifting heavy bar bell with he could guess is 300 hundred pounds on it.
Then man didn't look like he was breaking a sweat!
Naruto started working out in the room with the captain and soon heard the door open and entered Hinawa.
"Captain, we need to go over the reports."
Naruto rolled his eyes,
"So strict Lieutenant."
Naruto did look up and saw his hat.
Shit you not it said, "Hop if your Horny."
He was not sure if the man just didn't know or if he thought it was something funny.
The captain however,
"Hinawa your hat."
"What about it, sir?"
"Um, did you actually read what it said?"
"No sir, the front of the hat never entered my line of sight."
Naruto sweat dropped,
"Lieutenant Hinawa," Naruto pointed to his hat while lifting heavier dumbbells and focusing more on his right arm which was considered his dominant hand, "It says 'Hop if your Horny'. Whoever gave that to you obviously was doing it as a joke to make you look silly."
The Lieutenant turned to the captain,
"Is this hat not appropriate sir?"
Naruto dropped the dumbbells.
'Wait he still wants to wear the hat? What the fuck!?'
The captain sighed,
"Naruto, would you mind leaving I have to talk to the Lieutenant about this."
"Sure, do you mind sending some weights my way when this is over?"
Obi smiled,
"Sure, just let me know when you're done with them okay?"
"Okay." Naruto walked out of the office and closed the door before sighing, "Man that Hinawa is sure odd."
Turning around he saw Maki standing there with a smile,
"Yeah, the Lieutenant is odd, but he is a good person at heart."
Naruto smiled and blushed a bit,
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean someone can't be honest about those hats of his."
"True." Maki smiled, "So, want to join me on a trip to the bakery I heard they got some good stuff out today."
Naruto smiled,
"Sure, let me go check on Tama and then we can go." Naruto walked out of the room, down the hall a bit, and finally to the courtyard. Seeing Tamaki and Iris in the yard covering themselves in water while holding their hands in tent form, he smiled before walking back to Maki.
They both walked out of the office and outside. Both just enjoying the open air and the feeling of the sun on their faces.
"Ah what a great day to be alive."
Naruto nodded his head,
"Yeah, you sure said it." Naruto turned to Maki and frowned, "Hey Maki-chan can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
Naruto looked at her for a second and then continued, "I was wondering why you leave the military?"
Maki frowned, stopped in her step, and sighed,
"You know about that, huh?" She asked in a dull tone.
"Ye… No… I mean…" Naruto stammered, trying to explain himself, but failing to create a sentence.
Maki giggled at Naruto's antics.
"Truth? I just didn't feel like I was accomplishing anything worthwhile. Everything there was so driven and basic but here, I feel like I could do something for the betterment of mankind. Rather than just sitting behind a desk and do nothing." She frowned, "While my father and brother didn't approve of my decision, I do know my mother is proud of me for making the best choices possible for myself."
Naruto smiled,
"Huh I guess we have that in common."
Maki raised an eyebrow,
"My mother hated the Fire Force." Naruto said as he remembered his mother.
Maki's eyes widened,
"Really?"
"Yeah, she hated everything about it. Hated the people that ran it, Hajima Industry as a whole, hated the church, and hated the powerplant itself." Naruto said as he looked in the direction of the Amaterasu Power Plant, which was in the distance, looking small from where he and Maki stood. "While she understood its usage and the reason of its importance, she never cared for it. Stating something I'll understand when I'm older, to always be wary of anything related to it."
Naruto shook his head, "In the end, my mother hated everything about the current Japan. Even though my father was stead-fast for it. Given he had a military career and was a high-ranking officer, it is not a surprise he defended this country and his beliefs in it. He was not steadfast in Sol religion, but he understood the importance of the religion itself."
"But then-,"
"Not sure." Naruto rubbed the back of his head and they arrived at the bakery, "No one knows how they met and anyone that does I don't know them. Personally, it doesn't matter to me at the end of the day," He gripped his pendant, "They loved each other and had me, it is only right I stand by the ideals that were passed on to me and fight for my own ideals while I'm at it."
Maki smiled,
"I'm sure they are both proud." But she did look at Naruto's sad expression, "How did they die?"
Naruto stiffened and tightened his grip on his necklace, "I was told dad died against an Infernal that gave me these," he motioned to his cheeks. "My mother, I don't know what happened, but she disappeared the same day my dad died."
Maki's frown deepened,
"Sorry."
Naruto loosened his grip and smiled at her,
"Hey, it is okay, I mean in the end I still had someone in my life and that was all that mattered you know." Naruto said in an attempt to cheer Maki up, his stomach growling loud enough for the two of them to hear. "Seems that I'm starving. Let's get some bagels and other great sweets!"
Maki saw him head into the store and all she could do is stare at his back and wonder,
'His burden, it's just like Shinra. Someone that lost everything and wants to make the world right no matter what, wanting to make sure to spare others from the pain he suffered.' Maki thought as she grabbed the door handle. 'His strength of will, just like Shinra is remarkable. I have a feeling those two, might just be the light to guide the world to the next great step.'
Maki followed in suit for the store, knowing that this young man was truly an amazing figure in the world.
Fire Company 1
Interrogation Room
Rekka was chained to the floor, his arms bound behind his back, his legs chained as well with liquid nitrogen containers.
The man was listless and just staring at the floor, not making a single move since his capture and not even uttering something about his star.
Flam was looking at him while Li and Burns were trying to get information out of him.
"Rekka it is in your best interest to help us." Li frowned, "We want to know why you were turning those children Infernal."
Burns stared at him.
Rekka didn't respond, he didn't even flinch. He just stared at the ground.
Li sighed,
"Rekka please we all came to this place together, why won't you trust us? Please if you help us, we might be able to get you out of this without too much trouble."
The man didn't move.
Li sighed, before getting out of his chair and walking out of the room, while Burns stared at Rekka.
'One thing is for sure, whoever this Evangelist is, they have great faith that he won't talk. I was half expecting him to kill himself at some point, but no he is just sitting here still as death and not even reacting to the people around him.' Burns narrowed his eyes, 'Something is not right.'
Walking out of the room he turned to the guard,
"Don't let anyone else in the room got it?"
The man nodded his head, before walking into the room and making sure Rekka was still.
Walking into the two-way mirror room, Li and Flamm sighed,
"This is going nowhere; the captain gathering is in a little bit Captain. Shouldn't you be heading that way soon?"
Burns nodded his head,
"Yes, but before I go make sure that we have all measure necessary to keep Rekka alive. I don't know why but for some reason, I feel something is off and if it comes to it, he might try to kill himself to hide his secrets." Burns replied as he tried to think of a way to get information from Rekka.
Flamm and Li nodded their heads but soon the hair on the back of their necks stood up.
They all investigated the room and saw the guard standing there next to Rekka with a dark smile on his face.
"FOR THE EVANGELIST!" He held up a small item in his hand and Flamm reacted,
"No, REKKA!"
Rekka smiled lightly, as the 'guard' pressed a small bottle against Rekka's neck, the insect within scuttling inside.
'My Stars, Flamm. I will wait for you on the other side.' He closed his eyes and in a rare moment, he had clarity on what he wanted in this world as the bug started to enter his body.
To be with his friends. Forever.
An explosion erupted and soon, the First was in flames and everyone was scrambling around to find out what happened.
Burns, standing unharmed from the explosion with his two Lieutenants doing the same saw that the mirror was shattered and that Rekka's body was turned to a blood smear and Flamm stared on.
Tears streamed down his face,
"REKKA!"
Chapter End